2017 First Data 500
The 2017 First Data 500 was a Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series race held on October 29, 2017, at Martinsville Speedway in Ridgeway, Virginia. Contested over 505 laps – extended from 500 laps due to an overtime finish – on the 0.526-mile (0.847-kilometre) short track, it was the 33rd race of the 2017 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series season, seventh race of the playoffs, and first race of the Round of 8. Leading 184 laps during the race, Joe Gibbs Racing driver Kyle Busch won his fifth race of the season – and his third during the playoffs – progressing to the Championship 4 as a result of the victory.
| Race details[1][2][3][4][5][6][7][8][9] | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Race 33 of 36 in the 2017 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series | |||
 | |||
| Date | October 29, 2017 | ||
| Location | Martinsville Speedway in Ridgeway, Virginia | ||
| Course | Permanent racing facility | ||
| Course length | 0.526 miles (0.847 km) | ||
| Distance | 505 laps, 265.63 mi (427.49 km) | ||
| Scheduled distance | 500 laps, 263 mi (423.257 km) | ||
| Average speed | 74.902 miles per hour (120.543 km/h) | ||
| Pole position | |||
| Driver | Team Penske | ||
| Time | 19.622 | ||
| Most laps led | |||
| Driver | Kyle Busch | Joe Gibbs Racing | |
| Laps | 184 | ||
| Winner | |||
| No. 18 | Kyle Busch | Joe Gibbs Racing | |
| Television in the United States | |||
| Network | NBCSN | ||
| Announcers | Rick Allen, Jeff Burton and Steve Letarte | ||
| Radio in the United States | |||
| Radio | MRN | ||
| Booth announcers | Joe Moore, Jeff Striegle and Rusty Wallace | ||
| Turn announcers | Dave Moody (Backstretch) | ||
The 2017 First Data 500 was a Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series race held on October 29, 2017, at Martinsville Speedway in Ridgeway, Virginia. Contested over 505 laps – extended from 500 laps due to an overtime finish – on the 0.526-mile (0.847-kilometre) short track, it was the 33rd race of the 2017 Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series season, seventh race of the playoffs, and first race of the Round of 8.
Leading 184 laps during the race, Joe Gibbs Racing driver Kyle Busch won his fifth race of the season – and his third during the playoffs – progressing to the Championship 4 as a result of the victory.
Report
[edit]Background
[edit]
Martinsville Speedway is an International Speedway Corporation owned NASCAR stock car racing track located in Henry County, in Ridgeway, Virginia, just to the south of Martinsville. At 0.526 miles (0.847 kilometres) in length, it is the shortest track in the NASCAR Cup Series. The track was also one of the first paved oval tracks in NASCAR, being built in 1947 by H. Clay Earles. It is also the only race track that has been on the NASCAR circuit from its beginning in 1948. Along with this, Martinsville is the only NASCAR oval track on the entire NASCAR track circuit to have asphalt surfaces on the straightaways, then concrete to cover the turns.
Entry list
[edit]Practice
[edit]First practice
[edit]Denny Hamlin was the fastest in the first practice session with a time of 19.846 seconds and a speed of 95.415 mph (153.556 km/h).[10]
| Pos | No. | Driver | Team | Manufacturer | Time | Speed |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 11 | Denny Hamlin | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 19.846 | 95.415 |
| 2 | 42 | Kyle Larson | Chip Ganassi Racing | Chevrolet | 19.870 | 95.299 |
| 3 | 31 | Ryan Newman | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 19.900 | 95.156 |
| Official first practice results | ||||||
Final practice
[edit]Joey Logano was the fastest in the final practice session with a time of 20.056 seconds and a speed of 94.416 mph (151.948 km/h).[11]
| Pos | No. | Driver | Team | Manufacturer | Time | Speed |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 22 | Joey Logano | Team Penske | Ford | 20.056 | 94.416 |
| 2 | 24 | Chase Elliott | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 20.075 | 94.326 |
| 3 | 78 | Martin Truex Jr. | Furniture Row Racing | Toyota | 20.083 | 94.289 |
| Official final practice results | ||||||
Qualifying
[edit]
Joey Logano scored the pole for the race with a time of 19.622 and a speed of 96.504 mph (155.308 km/h).[12]
Qualifying results
[edit]| Pos | No. | Driver | Team | Manufacturer | R1 | R2 | R3 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 22 | Joey Logano | Team Penske | Ford | 19.631 | 19.571 | 19.622 |
| 2 | 78 | Martin Truex Jr. | Furniture Row Racing | Toyota | 19.725 | 19.696 | 19.627 |
| 3 | 24 | Chase Elliott | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 19.742 | 19.685 | 19.636 |
| 4 | 21 | Ryan Blaney | Wood Brothers Racing | Ford | 19.718 | 19.705 | 19.700 |
| 5 | 14 | Clint Bowyer | Stewart–Haas Racing | Ford | 19.721 | 19.608 | 19.702 |
| 6 | 11 | Denny Hamlin | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 19.760 | 19.691 | 19.707 |
| 7 | 2 | Brad Keselowski | Team Penske | Ford | 19.695 | 19.696 | 19.712 |
| 8 | 77 | Erik Jones (R) | Furniture Row Racing | Toyota | 19.755 | 19.722 | 19.772 |
| 9 | 42 | Kyle Larson | Chip Ganassi Racing | Chevrolet | 19.694 | 19.685 | 19.786 |
| 10 | 43 | Aric Almirola | Richard Petty Motorsports | Ford | 19.658 | 19.716 | 19.820 |
| 11 | 41 | Kurt Busch | Stewart–Haas Racing | Ford | 19.757 | 19.661 | 19.844 |
| 12 | 5 | Kasey Kahne | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 19.667 | 19.734 | 19.947 |
| 13 | 4 | Kevin Harvick | Stewart–Haas Racing | Ford | 19.734 | 19.736 | |
| 14 | 18 | Kyle Busch | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 19.709 | 19.739 | |
| 15 | 19 | Daniel Suárez (R) | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 19.708 | 19.746 | |
| 16 | 1 | Jamie McMurray | Chip Ganassi Racing | Chevrolet | 19.711 | 19.751 | |
| 17 | 20 | Matt Kenseth | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 19.660 | 19.767 | |
| 18 | 31 | Ryan Newman | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 19.711 | 19.791 | |
| 19 | 27 | Paul Menard | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 19.727 | 19.792 | |
| 20 | 95 | Michael McDowell | Leavine Family Racing | Chevrolet | 19.684 | 19.793 | |
| 21 | 88 | Dale Earnhardt Jr. | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 19.715 | 19.795 | |
| 22 | 17 | Ricky Stenhouse Jr. | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford | 19.756 | 19.808 | |
| 23 | 10 | Danica Patrick | Stewart–Haas Racing | Ford | 19.728 | 19.833 | |
| 24 | 48 | Jimmie Johnson | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 19.734 | 20.126 | |
| 25 | 3 | Austin Dillon | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 19.779 | ||
| 26 | 13 | Ty Dillon (R) | Germain Racing | Chevrolet | 19.791 | ||
| 27 | 47 | A. J. Allmendinger | JTG Daugherty Racing | Chevrolet | 19.792 | ||
| 28 | 32 | Matt DiBenedetto | Go Fas Racing | Ford | 19.799 | ||
| 29 | 37 | Chris Buescher | JTG Daugherty Racing | Chevrolet | 19.810 | ||
| 30 | 72 | Cole Whitt | TriStar Motorsports | Chevrolet | 19.871 | ||
| 31 | 38 | David Ragan | Front Row Motorsports | Ford | 19.880 | ||
| 32 | 15 | Reed Sorenson | Premium Motorsports | Chevrolet | 19.885 | ||
| 33 | 34 | Landon Cassill | Front Row Motorsports | Ford | 19.916 | ||
| 34 | 6 | Trevor Bayne | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford | 19.921 | ||
| 35 | 83 | Gray Gaulding (R) | BK Racing | Toyota | 19.971 | ||
| 36 | 23 | Corey LaJoie (R) | BK Racing | Toyota | 19.987 | ||
| 37 | 33 | Jeffrey Earnhardt | Circle Sport – The Motorsports Group | Chevrolet | 20.027 | ||
| 38 | 51 | Kyle Weatherman | Rick Ware Racing | Chevrolet | 20.226 | ||
| 39 | 66 | Carl Long (i) | MBM Motorsports | Chevrolet | 20.410 | ||
| 40 | 7 | Hermie Sadler | Premium Motorsports | Chevrolet | 20.585 | ||
| Official qualifying results | |||||||
- Jimmie Johnson started from the rear after changing tires on the car following qualifying.[13]
Race
[edit]Stage 1
[edit]Joey Logano led the field to the green flag at 3:16 p.m., and he led the opening stint of the race until the first caution of the race on lap 37,[14] when Ty Dillon, Ricky Stenhouse Jr. and Michael McDowell were involved in an accident at turn 2. This also served as a competition caution, which was initially planned for lap 45.[15] The race restarted on lap 45 with Logano leading, but he was passed by his Team Penske teammate Brad Keselowski on lap 49. Keselowski maintained the lead through to the next caution period on lap 63, following a spin for David Ragan at turn 4. Keselowski kept the lead at the restart on lap 69, before being re-passed by Logano 10 laps later before another caution period followed on lap 87, due to contact between Danica Patrick and A. J. Allmendinger.[14] Jimmie Johnson took the lead during the pit stop cycle, holding the lead until lap 114, when Keselowski returned to the lead, which he held to the end of the stage.
Stage 2
[edit]Kyle Busch took the lead of the race during the pit stop cycle, going into the race's longest green flag run of 122 laps, which culminated in the end of the second stage. Busch led for 123 laps during the stage, but it was Keselowski that prevailed following contact between the two drivers.
Final stage
[edit]
Just as he did between the first two stages, Busch took the race lead from Keselowski prior to the race restarting. Busch led the next stint of the race until the sixth caution period at lap 304,[14] as Kyle Larson hit the wall on the backstretch and the resulting damage caused his retirement from the race. Busch kept the race lead at the restart on lap 314, but the race was back under neutralized conditions within 3 laps as Erik Jones spun out in turn 4. Busch led to the restart on lap 322, but he was passed shortly after by Chase Elliott; Elliott led the race up to the next caution period at lap 362, again caused by a spinning car in turn 4 – this time being Landon Cassill. Keselowski took the race lead during the resulting pit stop cycle, and from the restart on lap 368 until Elliott regained the lead on lap 386.
Elliott held the lead for the next portion of the race, up until the race's ninth caution period on lap 459, caused by an accident for Carl Long in turn 2. Busch and Elliott traded the lead during the pit stop cycle before Keselowski took the race lead from Elliott on lap 471. With eight laps to go, Logano spun out in the second turn as a result of a flat tire to cause the tenth caution of the race. At the restart with four laps to go, Keselowski started from the outside lane and was run up the track by Elliott to the inside in turn 3; behind, Denny Hamlin moved into second place, and on the following lap at turn 3, Hamlin spun Elliott around, with Elliott impacting the wall, causing another caution period and an overtime finish.[16]
Overtime
[edit]Hamlin led the field to the restart with two laps to go, but Busch bumped his Joe Gibbs Racing teammate out of the way at the start of the final lap, and ultimately won the race to advance to the Championship 4 at Homestead–Miami Speedway. Hamlin ultimately finished the race in seventh place,[16] as he was passed by Martin Truex Jr., Clint Bowyer, Keselowski, Kevin Harvick and Trevor Bayne. Numerous drivers were involved in a crash on the frontstretch as the race was finishing.[14]
Race results
[edit]Stage results
[edit]Stage 1 Laps: 130
| Pos | No | Driver | Team | Manufacturer | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | Brad Keselowski | Team Penske | Ford | 10 |
| 2 | 18 | Kyle Busch | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 9 |
| 3 | 22 | Joey Logano | Team Penske | Ford | 8 |
| 4 | 48 | Jimmie Johnson | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 7 |
| 5 | 78 | Martin Truex Jr. | Furniture Row Racing | Toyota | 6 |
| 6 | 24 | Chase Elliott | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 5 |
| 7 | 21 | Ryan Blaney | Wood Brothers Racing | Ford | 4 |
| 8 | 5 | Kasey Kahne | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 3 |
| 9 | 3 | Austin Dillon | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 2 |
| 10 | 11 | Denny Hamlin | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 1 |
| Official stage one results | |||||
Stage 2 Laps: 130
| Pos | No | Driver | Team | Manufacturer | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | Brad Keselowski | Team Penske | Ford | 10 |
| 2 | 18 | Kyle Busch | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 9 |
| 3 | 22 | Joey Logano | Team Penske | Ford | 8 |
| 4 | 78 | Martin Truex Jr. | Furniture Row Racing | Toyota | 7 |
| 5 | 24 | Chase Elliott | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 6 |
| 6 | 21 | Ryan Blaney | Wood Brothers Racing | Ford | 5 |
| 7 | 4 | Kevin Harvick | Stewart–Haas Racing | Ford | 4 |
| 8 | 20 | Matt Kenseth | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 3 |
| 9 | 14 | Clint Bowyer | Stewart–Haas Racing | Ford | 2 |
| 10 | 48 | Jimmie Johnson | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 1 |
| Official stage two results | |||||
Final stage results
[edit]Stage 3 Laps: 240
| Pos | Grid | No | Driver | Team | Manufacturer | Laps | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 14 | 18 | Kyle Busch | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 505 | 58 |
| 2 | 2 | 78 | Martin Truex Jr. | Furniture Row Racing | Toyota | 505 | 48 |
| 3 | 5 | 14 | Clint Bowyer | Stewart–Haas Racing | Ford | 505 | 36 |
| 4 | 7 | 2 | Brad Keselowski | Team Penske | Ford | 505 | 53 |
| 5 | 13 | 4 | Kevin Harvick | Stewart–Haas Racing | Ford | 505 | 36 |
| 6 | 34 | 6 | Trevor Bayne | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford | 505 | 31 |
| 7 | 6 | 11 | Denny Hamlin | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 505 | 31 |
| 8 | 4 | 21 | Ryan Blaney | Wood Brothers Racing | Ford | 505 | 38 |
| 9 | 17 | 20 | Matt Kenseth | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 505 | 31 |
| 10 | 22 | 17 | Ricky Stenhouse Jr. | Roush Fenway Racing | Ford | 505 | 27 |
| 11 | 21 | 88 | Dale Earnhardt Jr. | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 505 | 26 |
| 12 | 24 | 48 | Jimmie Johnson | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 505 | 33 |
| 13 | 25 | 3 | Austin Dillon | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 505 | 26 |
| 14 | 18 | 31 | Ryan Newman | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 505 | 23 |
| 15 | 15 | 19 | Daniel Suárez (R) | Joe Gibbs Racing | Toyota | 505 | 22 |
| 16 | 12 | 5 | Kasey Kahne | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 505 | 24 |
| 17 | 23 | 10 | Danica Patrick | Stewart–Haas Racing | Ford | 505 | 20 |
| 18 | 10 | 43 | Aric Almirola | Richard Petty Motorsports | Ford | 505 | 19 |
| 19 | 20 | 95 | Michael McDowell | Leavine Family Racing | Chevrolet | 505 | 18 |
| 20 | 19 | 27 | Paul Menard | Richard Childress Racing | Chevrolet | 505 | 17 |
| 21 | 29 | 37 | Chris Buescher | JTG Daugherty Racing | Chevrolet | 505 | 16 |
| 22 | 11 | 41 | Kurt Busch | Stewart–Haas Racing | Ford | 505 | 15 |
| 23 | 33 | 34 | Landon Cassill | Front Row Motorsports | Ford | 505 | 14 |
| 24 | 1 | 22 | Joey Logano | Team Penske | Ford | 504 | 29 |
| 25 | 30 | 72 | Cole Whitt | TriStar Motorsports | Chevrolet | 504 | 12 |
| 26 | 8 | 77 | Erik Jones (R) | Furniture Row Racing | Toyota | 504 | 11 |
| 27 | 3 | 24 | Chase Elliott | Hendrick Motorsports | Chevrolet | 504 | 21 |
| 28 | 31 | 38 | David Ragan | Front Row Motorsports | Ford | 503 | 9 |
| 29 | 16 | 1 | Jamie McMurray | Chip Ganassi Racing | Chevrolet | 503 | 8 |
| 30 | 26 | 13 | Ty Dillon (R) | Germain Racing | Chevrolet | 501 | 7 |
| 31 | 35 | 83 | Gray Gaulding (R) | BK Racing | Toyota | 501 | 6 |
| 32 | 32 | 15 | Reed Sorenson | Premium Motorsports | Chevrolet | 500 | 5 |
| 33 | 36 | 23 | Corey LaJoie (R) | BK Racing | Toyota | 500 | 4 |
| 34 | 40 | 7 | Hermie Sadler | Premium Motorsports | Chevrolet | 494 | 3 |
| 35 | 38 | 51 | Kyle Weatherman | Rick Ware Racing | Chevrolet | 488 | 2 |
| 36 | 39 | 66 | Carl Long (i) | MBM Motorsports | Chevrolet | 444 | 0 |
| 37 | 9 | 42 | Kyle Larson | Chip Ganassi Racing | Chevrolet | 300 | 1 |
| 38 | 37 | 33 | Jeffrey Earnhardt (R) | Circle Sport – The Motorsports Group | Chevrolet | 274 | 1 |
| 39 | 28 | 32 | Matt DiBenedetto | Go Fas Racing | Ford | 187 | 1 |
| 40 | 27 | 47 | A. J. Allmendinger | JTG Daugherty Racing | Chevrolet | 94 | 1 |
| Official race results | |||||||
Race statistics
[edit]- Lead changes: 16 among 6 different drivers
- Cautions/Laps: 11 for 74 laps
- Red flags: 0
- Time of race: 3 hours, 32 minutes, 47 seconds
- Average speed: 74.902 miles per hour (120.543 km/h)
Media
[edit]Television
[edit]NBC Sports covered the race on the television side. Rick Allen, Jeff Burton and Steve Letarte had the call in the broadcast booth, while Dave Burns, Marty Snider and Kelli Stavast reported from pit lane.
| NBCSN | |
|---|---|
| Booth announcers | Pit reporters |
| Lap-by-lap: Rick Allen Color commentator: Jeff Burton Color commentator: Steve Letarte |
Dave Burns Marty Snider Kelli Stavast |
Radio
[edit]MRN covered the radio call for the race, which was simulcast on SiriusXM's NASCAR Radio channel.
| MRN | ||
|---|---|---|
| Booth announcers | Turn announcers | Pit reporters |
| Lead announcer: Joe Moore Announcer: Jeff Striegle Announcer: Rusty Wallace |
Backstretch: Dave Moody | Alex Hayden Winston Kelley Steve Post |
Standings after the race
[edit]
|
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
References
[edit]- ^ "2017 schedule". Jayski.com. Jayski's Silly Season Site. May 5, 2016. Archived from the original on February 4, 2017. Retrieved September 19, 2017.
- ^ "Martinsville Speedway". NASCAR.com. NASCAR Media Group, LLC. January 3, 2013. Archived from the original on April 25, 2017. Retrieved September 19, 2017.
- ^ "Entry List". MRN.com. Motor Racing Network. October 23, 2017. Archived from the original on October 23, 2017. Retrieved October 23, 2017.
- ^ "First Practice Results". MRN.com. Motor Racing Network. October 28, 2017. Archived from the original on October 29, 2017. Retrieved October 28, 2017.
- ^ "Final Practice Results". MRN.com. Motor Racing Network. October 28, 2017. Archived from the original on October 29, 2017. Retrieved October 28, 2017.
- ^ "Qualifying Results". MRN.com. Motor Racing Network. October 29, 2017. Archived from the original on October 30, 2017. Retrieved October 29, 2017.
- ^ "First Data 500 Results". MRN.com. Motor Racing Network. October 29, 2017. Archived from the original on November 7, 2017. Retrieved October 29, 2017.
- ^ "Points standings" (PDF). Jayski.com. Jayski's Silly Season Site. October 30, 2017. Archived from the original (PDF) on January 29, 2019. Retrieved October 30, 2017.
- ^ "Manufacturer standings" (PDF). Jayski.com. Jayski's Silly Season Site. October 30, 2017. Archived from the original (PDF) on January 29, 2019. Retrieved October 30, 2017.
- ^ Utter, Jim (October 28, 2017). "Denny Hamlin rockets to top of first Cup practice at Martinsville". Motorsport.com. Ridgeway, Virginia: Motorsport Network. Retrieved October 28, 2017.
- ^ Utter, Jim (October 28, 2017). "Logano leads final practice at Martinsville". Motorsport.com. Ridgeway, Virginia: Motorsport Network. Retrieved October 28, 2017.
- ^ Fryer, Jenna (October 29, 2017). "Johnson spins in qualifying before Martinsville playoff race". Associated Press. Ridgeway, Virginia: AP Sports. Associated Press. Archived from the original on October 30, 2017. Retrieved October 29, 2017.
- ^ "Jimmie Johnson to move to the rear at Martinsville". NASCAR.com. Ridgeway, Virginia. October 29, 2017. Retrieved October 29, 2017.
- ^ a b c d Hembree, Mike (October 29, 2017). "Kyle Busch punches ticket to final four with dramatic win at Martinsville". USA TODAY. Retrieved October 29, 2017.
- ^ Albert, Zack (October 28, 2017). "Snapshot: Martinsville". NASCAR. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved November 30, 2025.
- ^ a b "Kyle Busch wins wild race at Martinsville". ESPN.com. ESPN Inc. October 29, 2017. Retrieved November 30, 2025.